Resilient finger string anchor eyelet



March 1, 1-960 J. H. GILBERT 2,925,440

RESILIENT FINGER STRING ANCHOR EYELET Filed April 20, 1959 mun! 1. i"

\\\\\\\\\ll 6 IO INVENTOR d'ackhf'ilberl' ATTORNEY United States Paten 2,926,440 RESILIENT FINGER STRING ANCHOR EYELET Jack H. Gilbert, Washington, D.C. Application April 20, 1959, Serial No. 807,442

3 Claims. (Cl. 40-21) This invention relates to string anchors and, more particularly, to a spring-finger anchor for trapping a loop of string on a tag.

The invention is intended primarily, although not exclusively, for use on a baggage tag of the type shown in US. Patent No. 2,882,627, of April 21, 1959, entitled Baggage Tag with Trap Studs, wherein a baggage tag is formed of two severable portions. A string loop, anchored through a reinforced hole in one tag portion, is passed around a bag handle and then anchored by engaging the bight of the loop in a trap stud on the other tag portion. This provides for very quick, tangle-free attachment of the tag on the bag handle with a short string loop, which holds the tag close to the handle where it is not likely to be torn loose inadvertently, and permits the tag and string both to be quickly removed simply by tearing the tag portions apart.

The object now is to provide an improved string anchor, or trap stud formed from a conventional blank, which can be installed wtih slightly modified existing machinery. 'More particularly, it is proposed herein to utilize a conventional metal eyelet of the type wherein the cylindrical end of a barrel-like body, having an annular flange at the other end, is mounted through a hole in the tag. Thereafter, the cylindrical end of the body is spread outwardly by a die to provide radiating fingers which loosely engage the hole-region of the tag opposite the flange on the other end of the eyelet. Ordinarily,

the outwardly radiating fingers are either flattened outwardly against the tag surface or, alternatively, curled under themselves by the die and then squashed fiat by the die against the tag surface. The invention resides in the discovery that, by slightly modifying the die so as to curl the fingers somewhat, while avoiding the final flattening, the fingers may be curled under themselves sufficiently to engage against the tag surface, thereby to provide inwardly terminating spring deteuts for trapping a string loop when the latter is pulled beneath them.

These and other objects will be apparent from the following specification and drawing, in which:

Fig. l is a plan view of a baggage tag utilizing a trap study according to the invention; and,

Fig. 2 is a cross-section along the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Referring now to the drawing, in which like reference numerals denote similar elements, the baggage tag 2, on which the invention is adapted to be used, is formed with a tear-starting notch 4 between the two halves 6 and 8, respectively, of the tag. A hole 10, reinforced with a conventional cardboard annulus 12, is provided on half 6 of the tag, and a hole 14 with an eyelet 16 are on the other half 8 of the tag. It is the special form and adaptation of eyelet 16, so that it constitutes a trap stud, with which this invention is concerned.

In accordance with the conventional practice, the blank from which eyelet 16 is formed is an elongate cylindrical barrel having a flange 18 pre-formed at one end. Ordinarily, flange 18 is placed'downwardly on an anvil, hole 14 is fitted downwardly over the barrel, and the nib of a spreading and curling die, not shown, is forced into the upper end of the blank so as to split the upper portion of the barrel into a plurality of radiating fingers. As the die moves downwardly, the fingers are first curled under themselves and then pressed fiat tightly against the upper side of the work. Eyelet inserters, both hand and power driven, are well known and widely used. However, in accordance with this invention, the splitting and curling die of the eyelet inserter is formed so that at the end of its stroke, the under-curled radiating fingers 22 are not pressed flat against the upper side of tag 2.

As shown best in Fig. 2, eyelet 16 is formed with an overly-long barrel 20 extending upwardly from flange 18 and, from the top of barrel 20, fingers 22 radiate outwardly and are curled under, as at 24, leaving their inwardly directed free ends 26 radially spaced outwardly from barrel 20, and also leaving a trap space 28 large enough for amply accommodating the bight 30 of a string loop 32.

In operation, string loop 32, originally anchored only through hole 10, is passed under and thence back over a baggage handle. A bight 30 is formed in the loop and pulled under one or more of radiating fingers 22. While, in Fig. l, the string bight is shown trapped beneath all but one of fingers 22, it needs only to be snapped beneath one or two of the fingers to be irreversably engaged. When tag 2 is to be removed, a tear is started at notch 4 so as to sever halves 6 and 8 from one another, and half of the tag may then be pulled through and beneath the baggage handle.

Eyelet 16, in addition to its general utility as a trap study, may be used also as a conventional eyelet. It may also serve as a combined eyelet and trap stud by first anchoring a string through its barrel 20, in a manner comparable to that in which the string is anchored through reinforced hole 10, and then snapping the loop bight beneath one or more fingers 22.

The invention is not limited to the exact form and details shown and described, but is intended to cover all substitutions, modifications and equivalents within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:.

1. A string anchor, comprising an eyelet having a barrel portion adapted to engage through a hole in a sheet, an enlargement at one end of the barrel portion for engaging against one side of the sheet, and a plurality of integral radiating resilient fingers extending outwardly from the other end of said barrel portion, said fingers having free ends respectively curling under themselves and extending inwardly towards the barrel and terminating short of the barrel, said fingers and said barrel defining recesses for receiving the bight of a string.

2. In combination, a sheet having a hole therein, a string anchor comprising a barrel engaged through the hole, an enlargement at one end of said barrel engaging against one side of said sheet, said barrel being substantially longer than the thickness of said sheet and the other end of said barrel extending away from the other side of said sheet, and a plurality of radiating resilient hook-shaped fingers extending outwardly from the other end of said barrel, said fingers respectively curling under themselves with open bends and having their free ends engaging the other side of said sheet and substantially enclosing open spaces defined by the other side of the sheet, said barrel, and said fingers, whereby the bight of References Cited in the file of this patent a string snapped between the free end of a finger and UNITED STATES PATENTS said other side of the sheet is trapped in said open space.

3. The combination claimed in claim 2, said fingers 2,882,627 Gllbert P 1959 having end portions thereof adjacent their free ends en- 5 gaging fiatwise against said other side of said sheet, the FOREIGN BATENTS sheet being loosely engaged between said end portions 254,120 Italy July 12, 1927 and said enlargement V 

